Featuring young actor Ashwin Babu, the brother of famous Telugu TV personality Omkar is back with another film. His latest outing is Hidimbha which is promoted as a new age thriller. 

Story: The mysterious disappearance of 16 girls wreck unrest and while Abay (Ashwin) struggles to solve the case, the police department appoints Aadya to carry out the investigation. Together, the duo now has to uncrack the proceedings.

What about the artists performance?

Ashwin is a decent fit for his role and he has emoted to the best of his capabilities. There is a very good support cast for this low budget film as we see Nandita Sweta, Srinivasa Reddy, Sahithi Avancha, Sanjay Swaroop, Shijju, Vidyulekha Raman, Rajiv Kanakala, Shubaleka Sudakar, and others in the supporting roles. 

What about the technical finesse?

The director Aneel Kanneganti explores a rather strikingly new genre and he succeeds at presenting his plot in a fresh and hitting manner. There is a fine bit of detailing in the script. 

The background score is eerie and it gels with the theme of the film. The visuals are also of good quality. Together, they deliver a fine viewing experience to the audience. The making values are alright.

Analysis: 

Hidimbha is fresh and new age thriller subject that was never explored by the Telugu filmmakers in the past. It has a strikingly peculiar ending that leaves the viewers gasping.

There are shortcoming in the screenplay front where a good scene is followed with an underwhelming scene. The consistency is missing and that doesn't work one bit in favor of the film. All the impetus is held for the climax but the scenes leading to that could've been presented in a better manner. 

The disappearance of innocent women is shown in a crude manner and it catches the attention. The investigation track could have done with some better fine tuned writing.

Verdict: Hidimbha is definitely an appreciable effort in terms of core story. Had their been better writing and presentation in the middle portion, the film could have made for a far better watch.

Rating: 2.25/5